Stamp-canceling and postmarking machine.



Patented Aug. 2|, I900. G. V. FYKE. STAMP CANCELING AND PUSTMARKINGMACHINE.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1898.)

7 Shesta-$hael I.

(No Model.)

awuowfo:

QQM-AMM TSRM WL m: Nonms pzrsns cu. PHOTQLITNCSH WASHINGTON, n. c.

No. 656,40l. Patented Aug. 2|, I900. G. V. FYKE.

STAMP CANCELING AND POSTMA RKING MACHINE.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1898.)

' (N0 Modem 7 SheetsSheet 2.

mwnxov I I ckvxx'rmes.

n1: NORRIS Pzrzns 00.. PHOTO-LIYHO. WASNINGTON. 11c.

No. 656,40l. Patented Aug. 2|, I900.

C. V. FYKE.

STAMP GANCELING AND POSTMARKING MACHINE.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1898.)

(No Iodel.) 7 Sheets-Sheet 3.

TNE mums FEYERS co. wnorouma. wnsuwm'on. n. c.

N0. 656,40l. Patented AugflZl, I900.

I c. v. FY KE. STAMP GANCELING AND POSTMABKING MACHINE.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1898.) (No Model.) 1 Sheets-Sheet 4 m: normsPETER: w, puorzyumcv, WKSHINGTON. o, c.

No. 656,40l. Patented Aug. 2|, I900. C. V. FYKE. STAMP CANCELING ANDPOSTMARKING MACHINE.

A xicaci n file d Oct. 16, 1898.)

7 ShoetsShaet 5.

(No Model.)

aliamlesyFyi 4y No. 656,40l. Patented Aug. 2|, I900.

C. V. FYKE. I

STAMP CANCELING AND POS TMABKING MACHINE.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1898.)

7 SheetsSheet 6.

(No Model.)

m2 mums wzrzns cc PHwo-umo. WASNINGTON, o. c,

Patgntad Aug. 2|, I900; C. V. FYKE. STAMP GANGELING AND POSTMARKINGMACHINE.

A umumi filed on. 16, 1398.

(No Model!) NITED STATES- PATENT "GFFICE.

, ,OHARLES vQFY n, on KANSAS CITY, ins'souiai.

STAM P-CANCELI'NG AN 0,; POSTMARKING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 656,401, dated August21, 1900.

Application filed Oeto'ber18, 1898-1 Serial No. 693,894- (No niodel.)

I To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, CHARLES V. FYKE, a citizen of the United States,residing a't Kansas City, in the county of J ackson and State ofMissouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inStamp-Canceling and Postmarking Machines, of which the following isa'specification, reference being had therein to the accompanyingdrawings.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a machine embodying my improvements forpostmarking letters, canceling stamps, and similar purposes. Fig. 2 is aplan view, on a larger'scale,

of the more important parts ofthe mech=- anism. Fig. 3 is'an elevationof that part'of the machine shown in Fig. 2, looking at it from theinner side. Fig. 4 is a section on the broken line of Fig. 2. Fig. r isa section on the line y y of Fig. 2. Figs. 5 and 6 show thepressure-plate detached. Figs. 7 and 8 show the carrier for said platedetached. Figs. 9 and 10 show the carrier for a pressure-roller. Figs.11 and 12 show the spring locking-segment. Figs. 13, 14, and 15 show theplaten-roll and its vibrating support.

Fig. 16 is an edge view, and Fig. 17 a plan view, of the die andtype-carrier and the rotary hub or support therefor. Fig. 18 is aperspective of the wallor plate against which the letters are fed by thefeeding device. Fig. 19 is a face viewof the letter-releasing device.Fig. 20 is atop view of the same. Fig. 21 is a plan view of theprincipal parts of the machine on a full-sized scale, showing them inthe position occupied when the letter is passing through.

operative parts of the mechanism, but also to provide a table or holderfor the letters before, during, and after the canceling, printing,marking, or'like operation. this main plate or table and the relativepositions of the parts thereto attached one can regard the machine as awhole as having four well-defined spaces, areas, or compartments, eachindicated asa whole by A,A A and A4. The space or compartment at A isadapted to receive a letter, card, suitablyshaped package, or othersimilar article, to which are to be applied printed orstamped charactersor canceling-marks, &c., and also Guided byadapted to receive a largeror smaller pack of such cards, letters, or the like arranged face toface. The space'or compartment A holds the mechanism by which theprinting, marking, stamping, or cancelingis immediately effected.'lhatat A is a space or compartment into which the letters or the likeare delivered from the printing, stamping, or canceling mechanism. Thatat A is the one containing the letter-advancing mechanism as well assome of the parts which govern the letter in its passage through themachine and of those which provide an abutment or platen-like resistanceto the printer. Between the spaces or compartments at A and A there is apassage-way along which the letter travels when moving from the initialreceptacle at A to the final receptacle at A These several parts orregions of the machine are more or less separated by walls or partitiondevices, one, B, rising from the baseplate or tableA and situatedbetween the spaces A and A another at B lying between the spaces A and Aand still another at B arranged between the spaces A and A and some ofthe devices of the letter-advancing mechanism (which in thisconstruction includes an endless belt) may be regarded as a wall orletterstopping device between the space at A and that at A, on the onehand, and between that at A and A on the other hand. The letters when ina pack are initially pushed forward in the direction of the "arrow Xtoward the inner end of the space or compartment A. The inner ends ofthe letp ters are thus brought'successively into such A indicates a mainbase-plate or table which serves not only to hold the moving the spaceat A from that at A", but also serves as an active element in furnishingpressure in opposition to the letter-advancing mechanism and inretaining the letter at certain times against advance. The feeding .belt0 is supported upon a pulley or drumD on the receiving side of themachine and a second pulley or drum D on the delivery side. It is sosituated as to have at all times a portion 0' at the inner end of theinitial receiving-space A, a portion 0 at the inner end of the finalreceiving-space A and a portion 0 adjacent to and pressing somewhatagainst the aforesaid abutment-wall B. Power is preferably applied tothe shaft D of pulley D through gear-wheel D mounted and fixed thereon,said gear-wheel being rotated in any suitable manner from mechanism notshown. The portion 0 of the belt is preferably reduced in lengthrelative to the length of ordinary letters or like articles',so that thefrictional advancing force exerted by it upon the inner face of theinnermost letter of the ingoing pack shall be reduced as much as isadvantageous, this assisting in attaining a perfect separation of saidinnermost letter from the following ones of the pack and preventing morethan one letter from entering the passage-way at one time. When theoperator is pushing the letter or the pack inward, the portion 0 of thebelt yields slightly at the points where it is adjacent to the inner endof the wall B,and this allows the forward end of the letter to gainentrance into the passage-way. As soon as it does so enter theefficiency of the frictional feed action is increased, the letter beingnow gripped between the belt and the surface of the Wall B. When itreaches the proper position, it has its stamp canceled and a postmarkapplied, or it can have characters of any desired sort placed upon it bya printing, embossing, or similar action.

E indicates a hub or heavy disk mounted on a vertical axis, on which isalso secured a gear-wheel E in mesh with and receiving rotation fromgear-wheel D Said disk is provided with any suitable printing, stamping,canceling, marking, or other devices. As shown, it has a stamp-cancelingdie at E and a die or type-carrier at E, by which postmarks or the likecan be applied to the letter. Its shaft 6 is at such line that when thedies or type are rotating their active surfaces revolve in a pathintersecting a short distance the letter-path, so that they will notonly contact with? a face of the letter, but will exert more or lesspressure thereon. These printing or marking devices are inked at eachrotation by the inking roller or pad F, which is mounted on a pin atf.This pin is secured to an adjustable plate or carrier F. It can be movedtoward or from the dies by means of a nutf and a threaded rodfiwhichextends outward to the edge of the machine and is provided with athumb-head f the rod being loosely mounted in a guide-support f. f is aspring around the rod bearing against the guide f and against anadjustable stop f These parts can be so adjusted as to hold the inkingpad or roller Fat points where the dies can press against it and beproperly supplied with ink, and yet so as to permit the inking-pad toyield backward in the event of undesirable pressure from the die. Theforward end 6 of the die comes into contact with the letter at theproper instant, the latter being held in the passage-way againstadvancing by a shoulder or projection b, preferably part of or rigidlysecured to the wall B. The form of the innermost face of. this wallBwill be readily understood upon inspection of Figs. 2 and 18. It has amain surface, (indicated by b,) along which the letter travels when itfirst enters the passage-way. It also has a surface at 12 this beingprovided by the aforesaid projection furnishing the shoulder at b, or itmay be regarded as being recessed at that part which is adjacent to thereceiving end of the passage-way and ,thickened or projected rearward atthe part which is adjacent to the exit from the passage-way. Thefeed-belt travels normally in the plane of the surface 6, the horizontalplanes of the belt being below the surface I) and shoulder 11. Devicesare present which normally tend to press each incoming letter(supplemental to the pressing of the belt) toward the recessed portionof the wall or plate B. -As shown,

these comprise a plate G, a carrier-arm G,

and a support at g. The-carrier-arm G is pivotally connected to thesupport g, and it is hinged or pivoted to the plate G by a pin at g. Theplate G has a curved outer end at g and a flat pressure-face 9 Thecurved part 9 is so shaped and so related to the recessed surface of thewall 13 as to provide an inward narrowing throatway through which theletter is guided to a position between the pressure-surface g and therecessed part of the wall B. To overcome friction from the outer part ofthe plate G, a roller 9 is mounted therein in such Way as to assist theletter in passing. A slight spring -pressure is constantly imparted tothe plate G by the spring G which is coiled around the pin 9 and has oneend bearing against the arm G, the other end being adjustably locked ina segmentplate G It will now be seen that as each letter enters thepassage-way it is held by the plate G against the surface b, andtherefore be so guided that its forward end must impinge upon and bestopped by the shoulder b, and it is held under such stoppage until theforward end 6 of the die comes around to the tangent plane of theletter-surface, said end of the die beginning to act in or approximatelyin the radial plane of the axis e perpendicular to the letter-path. Itnow becomes necessary to release the letter from the shoulder 12, as itmust advance with the same speed as the peripheral speed of the die, andsuch release is accomplished as follows:

H indicates a releasing device, it being a swinging pusher adapted toengage with the outer face of the letter and push the letter bodilytoward the belt. It may be of any suitable form. As shown, it consistsof a bar or plate h, with presser fingers or plates h. It is held by apivot at H, passing through The presser fingers or plates h the eye hcan reciprocate through slots 12?, formed in the wall B, these slotsextending through the recessed part b and preferably also extendingsomewhat into the thicker portion at W. The releasing device H isintermittingly moved outward-that is, toward the beltby a cam E on thehub of the printing device or secured to its shaft 6. Preferably anantifriction-roller 71 is employed, mounted in ears h on the part H.This releasing device is normally pressed backward by the plate G,either by direct contact or through an intervening letter. Hence thereleasing device is moved in one direction by the cam E and in the otherby the spring-held plate G.- I also employ a spring h seated in socket hand contacting with the rear of wall B, for pressing back and retainingthe releasing device in its normal retracted position. The cam E is soplaced that it imparts its outward movement to the releasing device Hjust as the forward end 6 of the die reaches the line where it is readyto act-that is to say, the releasing device pushes the forward end ofthe letter outward against the belt far enough to release it from theshoulder b, and thereupon instantly the letter begins to again advancesimultaneously with the rotation and action of the printing devices.

By employing a stationary stop for the letter and a positively-actingdevice for pushing the letter away from the stop I attain manyadvantages over and results superior to those attained by the machineswherein use is made of letter-stops which move into and out from theletter-passage. Much trouble has been experienced with machines of thelatter sort owing to the fact that as the letters enter the passage-wayand approach the die (which they do with great rapidity) their impactupon the movable stops is such that their forward ends are bent,crumpled, and marred and in many cases are torn. In the presentconstruction I am enabled to provide a long stopping-surface, and bymeans of the yielding plate G, I can bring the letters gradually to astop, the toe g of this plate fitting snugly in the angle of theshoulder b and preventing the outward bending, wrinkling, or tearing ofthe letter end, and the releasing device H is of such nature that theforce which pushes the end of the letter away from the stop isdistributed over a large surface, the letter being clamped between tworelatively-broad holders namely, the plate G and the releasing deviceH-and therefore the strain from the belt is not permitted to harm theenvelop, card, paper, or the like, even when the latter is at adead-stop.

The plate G is pivoted to its carrier G at a point somewhat remote fromthe toe end 9 and several desirable results are thus attained. Thisallows the plate G to conform in position to the position of the activesurfaces of the releasing fingers or plates h of the releasing device H,and hence the expanded gripping-surface between the parts G and H at theforward end of the letter is maintained in its full area, which mightnot be the case if both of these parts should swing in separate andfixed arcs. By having the releasing fingers or plates h extend into andpass through the thicker part at b of the wall B, I insure that the veryfront line or edge of each letter shall be carried entirely clear of theouter corner of the shoulder 11 and delivered to the advancing-belt insuch way that marring is still further avoided. By examining Fig. 21 itwill be noticed that when looked at in plan view these releasing fingersor plates h extend beyond the toe The pressure exerted by the plate Gshould be reduced as much as possible, as the resisting force thereof isso much detracted from the eificiency of the belt. A delicate adjustment in this respect can be attained through the notched segment G Asabove stated, as soon as the letter is released from the stop b itrapidly passes toward the final receiving chamber or space A Thefriction upon one face can now be reduced, as by the employment of aroller, such as that at I, for the letter to bear against, and thepressure of the belt is increased by a spring-pressed roller J. This isheld in a carrier K, mounted on the above-described pivot g, and againstit bears a spring j.

Description has been given above of the printing device proper; but inmachines of this class there should be present also for the best resultsa pressure device adapted to bear against the letter, card, or paper inopposition to the printer. Such a pressureroller is shown at L. It maybe made of any suitable material. It is loosely mounted on the pin Z.The latter is secured to a plate or support Z. This support is pivotedat m to a carrier M, the latter being mounted so as to slide in aguideway at N, preferably below the table A. The carrier M is connectedto a threaded rod N, which passes through a guide at n and at the outerend has an adjusting-head n. The rod N is surrounded by a coiled springN By turning the head 01 the carrier M can be adjusted to any desiredposition; but in whatever position it may be placed it is capable ofyielding outward against the pressure of the spring N This latterfeature provides for the passage of any large, thick, or bulky articlesthrough the passage-way, for when the die comes to bear upon sucharticles they press against the roll L and it pushes the support Z andthe carrier M outward against the tension of the spring N In order toavoid transferring ink from the die to the pressure-roll L when noletter is between them, said roll and its support Z are mounted upon theaforesaid pivot m-that is to say, they can rock back and forth withrelation to the carrier M and with relation to the letter-path. After aletter has entered the passage-way and it becomes desirable to print ormark it it is necessary to bring the platen-roll L to its ac- ICO tiveposition in opposition to the die. This is done by the letter-actuatedmechanism, and in the present construction I have introduced what Ibelieve is the simplest form known of mechanism for automaticallybringing the platen-roll into position under the influence of theadvancing letter. The shaftpin Z of the roller L is extended up a suitable distance, and to its upper end is attached a relatively-delicatespring-arm 0. By preference this is formed of a light strip ofclock-spring steel, although any suitable material may be used for thisarm and it may be of any suitable shape. Normally it extends at aninclination toward and across the letter-path, having an orifice or slotat O in the wall B, into and out from which the end of this arm 0 canswing. As the letter approaches the position where it is to be printedor marked itimpinges upon this arm 0 and the latter is pushed in thedirection of the letter travel. As it moves in that direction it causesthe pin Z and the roll-carrier Z to swing on the pivot at m and to bringthe platen-roll L to that radial line of the die which passes throughthe pivot at m, and when the platen-roll reaches this line it is in theposition of greatest efficiency. AtP there is a stationary stop whichprevents the carrier Z from taking the roll L beyond said radial line.The arm 0, however, being itself elastic or held by a spring can movesomewhat farther in the last said direction, and it does so move whenthe releasing device H pushes the letter free from stop or shoulder b,for then the advancing lettercontinues its pushing action on the arm 0,carrying it entirely outside of the slot 0, and the letter holds the arm0 in this its furthermost position until its rear edge passes the arm,whereupon its resiliency or its spring causes it instantly to fly backinto the slot 0 and across the letter-path ready for the impact of thenext coming letter, and at the instant of its release from the rear endof the last preceding letter the spring at Q,which has been undertension, comes into action and quickly returns the support Z' and theroll L to their inactive position and holds them there until anotherletter strikes the arm 0 and brings the roll into working positionopposite to the die. The simple mechanism thus provided enables me todispense with the more or less complicated mechanisms that have beenheretofore used for this purpose, such as levers, links, toggle-joints,slide-guides, &c. Byexamining Fig. 18 it will be seen that the wall B isnear its lower edge provided with a passage-way b for the projectingsegment of the die and is also recessed somewhat farther, as shown at 17Inasmuch as this machine when considered as a whole is mainlycharacterized by the presence of a letter-feeding device adapted tomaintain a substantially-continuous frictional feeding force to a faceof the letter without break in such force from the time the letter firststarts from theinitial receiving passage-way until it reaches the finalreceptacle, it becomes advantageous to have means for creating as muchof such frictional force as any circumstances will require, although notso much as to prevent the necessary amount of slipping of the feedingdevice while in contact with the letter or paper. I herein provide notonly for an increase of this frictional grip of the feeder, (which inthis case I illustrate as a belt, more or less flexible,) but for aregulation thereof by means of devices which shall hold the feedingdevice against-the opposing wall with more or less pressure, as desired.The belt pulley or drum D is mounted upon a spring-held carrier bar orplate R, which is pivoted at r to the frame or base-plate. The spring Sacts so as to tend to move the belt-wheel D toward the wall 13,therebyincreasing the gripping action of the belt itself, but permittingit to yield in case of severe pressure caused by the entrance into thepassageway of an unusually thick letter or package. The extent, however,to which the wheel D and the belt can move is limited by an adjustablestop consisting of a lug or ear T on the carrier R and anadjusting-screw U, mounted in a threaded holder at V.

In addition to the parts above described for properly holding the belt Iemploy also a tightener for maintaining the proper tautness or stretchof the belt with relation to its supporting-wheels. This consists of anidler pulley or roll W, bearing against the idle side of the belt andcarried by an arm to, pivoted at w and adjustable to the desiredposition by means of the screw 10 and a set-nut 20 The pulley D of thebelt is also used as a stacker device, it having flexible fingers Y Y,which act to push the letters outward after they come from the printingmechanism in the well-known way. At Z there is an adjustable stop-wall,against which the letters that are thrown out by the belt impinge andwhich can be put at any place to correspond with the length of theletters that are being operated on.

What I claim is 1. In a machine of the class described, the combinationwith the printing device, and the letter-advancing mechanism, of astationary wall forming a guide for the letters to and from theimpression-point said wall having formed thereon a stop projectingacross the letter-path, and an automatically-acting releasing devicewhich pushes the letter away from said stop, substantially as set forth.

2. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, and the letter-advancing mechanism, of a stationarywall forming a guide for the letters to and from the impression-pointsaid wall having formed thereon a stop projecting across the letterpath,and an automatically-acting releasing device reciprocating through thesaid wall to push the letter away from said stop, substantially as setforth.

3. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, and the letter-advancing mechanism, of a stationarywall forming a guide for the letters to and from the impression-point,said Wall formed into a stop across the letter-path, and anautomatically-acting pusher carrying a plurality of presser-platesadapted to reciprocate through apertures in the said wall to push theletters away from the stop thereon, substantially as set forth.

4. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theletter-advancing mechanism, of a stationary wall forming a guide for theletters to and from the impressionpoint, said wall having formed thereona stop projecting across the letter-path, an automatically-acting pusheradapted to reciprocate through the said wall to push the letters awayfrom the stop thereon, and a printing device also passing through anaperture in said wall to contact with the letters, substantially as setforth.

5. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theletter-advancing mechanism, of a stationary wall forming a guide for theletters to and from the impressionpoint, said wall formed into a stopacross the letter-path, an automatically-acting pusher carrying aplurality of presser-plates adapted to reciprocate through apertures inthe said wall to push the letters away from the stop thereon, and aprinting device also passing through an aperture in said wall to contactwith the letters, substantially as set forth.

6. In a machine of the class described, the combination of the printingdevice on one side of the letter-path, the letter-advancing device onthe other'side of the letter-path, the stationary stop on the same sideof the letter-path as the printing device, and the pressure-plate on thesame side of the letter-path as the feedin g device, and adapted to movebodily toward and from the letter-path and also adapted to have eitherend move toward and from the letter-path more or less independently ofthe other end, substantially as set forth.

7. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, the letter-advancing mechanism, and a stationary stopin the letter-path, of a yielding pressureplate adapted to bearthroughout its length against one face of the letter, said plateterminating at the stationary stop and adapted to normally lie withinthe detaining-face of said stop, and a releasing device adapted to bearagainst the opposite face of the letter and push it out of the line ofsaid stop, substantially as set forth.

8. In a machine of the class described, the combination with aletter-advancing belt, of astationary wall against which the letter isforced by said belt, said wall projecting above said belt and havingformed thereon a fixed stop projecting across the path of travel of saidbelt and above the same, a pusher adapted to reciprocate through thesaid wall to push the letters away from the stop thereon, and a printingdevice also passing through an aperture in said wall to contact with theletters, substantially as set forth.

9. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, and the letter-advancin g mechanism, of a stationarywall opposed to the letter-advancing mechanism and provided with apassage-way, said wall having formed thereon a stationary stopprojecting across the letter-path, and a letterreleasing device arrangedto move through the said passage-way in said wall to push the letteraway from said stop, substantially as set forth.

10. The combination of the printing device,

the letter-advancing device, the stationary wall opposed to theletter-advancing device and provided with a series of slots or passages,the stationary stop in the letter-path and the releasing device having aseries of letter engaging fingers or plates movable through the saidslots or passages, substantially as set forth.

11. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, and the letter-advancing mechanism, of a yieldingpressure-plate adapted to bear against one face of the letters, and acarrier-arm on which said plate is pivotally mounted intermediate itslength, said carrier-arm being pivoted to the machine frame andspring-pressed toward the path of the letters, substantially as setforth.

12. In a machine of the class described, the combination with theprinting device, and the letter-advancing mechanism, of a yieldingpressure-plate adapted to bear against one face of the letters, acarrier-arm pivoted to the machine-frame and on which said plate ispivotally mounted intermediate its length, a spring exerting its tensionon said carrierarm toward the path of the letters, and a segment-platewith which the free end of said spring is adjustably engaged to vary thetension on said carrier-arm, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHAS. V. FYKE.

Witnesses:

FRANK E. DENNETT, N. OURrIs LAMMOND.

